Ohio: Power of Attorney Requirements

The short answer

Ohio's execution rule is one sentence: "A power of attorney must be signed by
the principal or in the principal's conscious presence by another individual
directed by the principal to sign the principal's name on the power of
attorney" (Ohio Rev. Code § 1337.25). No witnesses are required, and
notarization is not a validity requirement — but "a signature on a power of
attorney is presumed to be genuine if the principal acknowledges the
signature before a notary public," so nearly everyone notarizes anyway.

Two more Ohio basics: a power of attorney (POA) is durable by default
(§ 1337.24), and if your agent will sign a deed, mortgage, land contract, or
lease for you, the POA must be acknowledged and recorded with the county
recorder before the real property instrument itself (§ 1337.04).

Requirements one by one

Governing law

Ohio adopted the Uniform Power of Attorney Act: "Sections 1337.21 to 1337.64
of the Revised Code may be cited as the uniform power of attorney act"
(§ 1337.21), effective March 22, 2012. The older recording rules for real
property POAs live outside the uniform act in § 1337.04, which was amended
effective October 24, 2024.

Who must sign

The principal — or, if the principal cannot sign, "another individual
directed by the principal to sign the principal's name," acting "in the
principal's conscious presence" (§ 1337.25). Conscious presence means the
principal is aware of the signing as it happens.

Notarization

Optional for basic validity, valuable in practice. Ohio follows the uniform
act's presumption pattern: an acknowledged signature "is presumed to be
genuine" (§ 1337.25). Two things convert that option into a near-requirement.
First, the statutory form's execution block is built around a notarial
acknowledgment (§ 1337.60). Second, a POA used for a real property instrument
"shall be properly executed and acknowledged" before that instrument is
executed (§ 1337.04(B)) — no acknowledgment, no recordable deed.

Witnesses

None required. Section 1337.25 states the complete execution rule and says
nothing about witnesses; the statutory form in § 1337.60 likewise has no
witness lines, only the principal's signature and the notary block.

Statutory form

Yes. Section 1337.60 sets out an optional statutory form: the principal
initials the subjects of authority granted — real property, banks, retirement
plans, taxes, and (an Ohio addition) digital assets — and may grant access to
the content of electronic communications. Eight high-consequence actions,
including making gifts, changing survivorship rights or beneficiary
designations, and creating or amending trusts, are excluded "unless expressly
authorized and initialed by me in the Special Instructions" (§ 1337.60). A
document "substantially in" the statutory form gets the act's meaning and
effect.

Durable by default?

Yes. A POA created under the act "is durable unless it expressly provides
that it is terminated by the incapacity of the principal" (§ 1337.24). No
durability wording is needed.

Springing POA allowed?

Yes. A POA "is effective when executed unless the principal provides in the
power of attorney that it becomes effective at a future date or upon the
occurrence of a future event or contingency" (§ 1337.29(A)). You may name a
person to determine in writing that the trigger occurred (§ 1337.29(B)). If
the trigger is your incapacity and you named no determiner — or that person
will not act — the statute supplies the mechanism: a written determination by
a physician who examined you or a licensed psychologist who evaluated you,
or, for incapacity based on detention or absence, by an attorney, judge, or
appropriate governmental official (§ 1337.29(C)).

Real estate extras

Ohio is specific about sequence. A POA used for the execution of a deed,
mortgage, land installment contract, or lease must be "properly executed and
acknowledged by the principal before the execution and acknowledgement" of
that instrument, and must be "recorded in the office of the county recorder
of the county in which such property is situated, before the recording of"
the instrument (§ 1337.04(B)–(C)). Same-day execution or recording counts as
"before." A POA recorded late can be placed of record afterward with a
supporting affidavit, and an instrument of record for ten years or more is
presumed valid even if the POA never was recorded (§ 1337.04).

Out-of-state POAs

Recognized. A POA executed outside Ohio "is valid in this state if, when the
power of attorney was executed, the execution complied with the law of the
jurisdiction that determines the meaning and effect of the power of
attorney," or with the federal military POA statute (§ 1337.26(C)). Copies
count too: a photocopy or electronically transmitted copy "has the same
effect as the original" unless another statute provides otherwise
(§ 1337.26(D)).

What trips people up

• Skipping the notary because you can. Validity needs only a signature,
  but without acknowledgment there is no presumption of genuineness
  (§ 1337.25) and no path to recording for real estate (§ 1337.04(B)).
• The recording sequence for real estate. The POA must be acknowledged
  before the deed is signed and recorded before the deed is recorded
  (§ 1337.04(B)–(C)). Title agents handle this routinely; do-it-yourself
  closings miss it.
• Gifts need initials. On the statutory form, the agent cannot make
  gifts, change beneficiary designations, or touch trusts unless you
  expressly authorized and initialed that authority in the Special
  Instructions (§ 1337.60).
• Springing triggers without a named determiner. The statutory fallback
  requires a physician's or psychologist's written determination
  (§ 1337.29(C)) — build in your preferred mechanism instead of relying on
  the default.

Common questions

Does Ohio require witnesses or a notary? Neither is required for
validity — just the principal's signature (§ 1337.25). Notarization adds a
presumption of genuineness and is required before a POA can support a real
estate instrument (§ 1337.04(B)).

Is an Ohio power of attorney durable automatically? Yes, unless the
document expressly says it terminates on your incapacity (§ 1337.24).

Can it take effect only if I become incapacitated? Yes. Say so in the
document, and ideally name someone to make the written determination; if you
do not, a physician or licensed psychologist can supply it (§ 1337.29).

Will my out-of-state power of attorney work in Ohio? Yes, if its
execution complied with the law of the jurisdiction governing it
(§ 1337.26(C)). For Ohio real estate, the § 1337.04 acknowledgment and
recording rules still apply.

Statutes and sources

All quotations are from the Ohio Revised Code as published by the Ohio
Legislative Service Commission at codes.ohio.gov, accessed 2026-07-04. Each
page shows the section's effective date and latest amending act.

• Ohio Rev. Code § 1337.21 — "Sections 1337.21 to 1337.64 of the Revised
  Code may be cited as the uniform power of attorney act."
  View official text (codes.ohio.gov)
• Ohio Rev. Code § 1337.25 — signature requirement and acknowledgment
  presumption. Quoted above.
  View official text (codes.ohio.gov)
• Ohio Rev. Code § 1337.24 — durability by default. Quoted above.
  View official text (codes.ohio.gov)
• Ohio Rev. Code § 1337.29 — when a POA takes effect; springing
  mechanisms. Quoted above.
  View official text (codes.ohio.gov)
• Ohio Rev. Code § 1337.26 — validity, out-of-state POAs, and copies.
  Quoted above.
  View official text (codes.ohio.gov)
• Ohio Rev. Code § 1337.60 — the statutory form power of attorney and its
  express-authority list. Quoted above.
  View official text (codes.ohio.gov)
• Ohio Rev. Code § 1337.04 — acknowledgment and recording sequence for
  POAs used with real property instruments (amended effective October 24,
  2024). Quoted above.
  View official text (codes.ohio.gov)

Pending legislation: House Bill 446 (136th General Assembly), described
above, was pending in committee as of July 4, 2026.